Chapter I-pages
12-46
The Frank McCourt's purpose in chapter 1 is to introduce the topic of the novel, his miserable childhood to the reader.
"It was,
of course, a miserable childhood: the happy childhood is hardly worth your while. Worse than
the ordinary miserable childhood is the miserable Irish childhood, and worse yet is the
miserable Irish Catholic childhood" (11).
Frank
McCourt
Malachy McCourt-Frank's
father
Anglea McCourt-Frank's
mother
Baby
Margaret's Death
America
The
last thing Frank sees as the family leaves America is the Statue of Liberty, "where all the immigrants came in"(46).
Chapter II pages
47-90
The
purpose of Chapter 2 is to inform the reader
about:
Malachy's cold and uncaring family in
Ireland
Angela's Family is not happy to see Angela
return
Angela miscarries, her 5th pregnancy but 6th
child
Emphasize Malachy's
drinking
Emphasize the poverty and misery the family faces
More tragedy strikes the family
Frank is disillusioned about his
father
As chapter 2 ends Frank
states:
"We are back in the bed where Eugene died. I hope he's not cold
in that white coffin in the graveyard. I know he's not there anymore because angels come
to the graveyard and open the coffin and he's far from the Shannon dampness that kills,
up in the sky in heaven with Oliver and Margaret where they have plenty of fish and
chips and toffee and no aunts to bother you, where all the fathers bring home the money
from the Labour Exchange and you don't have to be running around to pubs to find them"
(90).
By the end of chapter 2, Angela has had a miscarriage and 3 of her
living children have died. Only Frank and Malachy Jr. are alive. The family is living in the
slums of Limerick, hungry all the time and Malachy continues to spend the dole on drinking.
Chapter III (3) pages
91-112
In chapter 3, Frank McCourt's purpose is to illustrate:
The family moves to Roden
Lane
"I can't
sleep in a place where there's a river sending poison to us in mist and fog" (95).
Malachy and the collar and
tie
"He puts on a shirt and attaches a collar with studs. He puts on
his tie and his cap and goes to the Labour Exchange for the dole. He will never leave
the house without collar and tie. A man without collar and tie is a man with no respect
for himslef...what will they think if you appear without collar and tie?"
(94).
Malachy, Jobs and
Drinking
"Bosses and foremen always show him respect ans say they're
ready to hire him, but he opens his mouth and they hear the North of Ireland accent,
they take a Limerickman instead" (94).
Malachy is
Proud
"if Dad came he wouldn't be much use because he never carries
anything, parcels, bags, packages. If you carry such things you lose your dignity.
that's what he says...He tells Malachy and me tht when you grow up you have to wear a
collar and tie and never let people see you carry things" (98).
Boots
The Angel
of the 7th Step
Unemployment in
Limerick
"The men sit because they're worn out from walking to the Labour Exchange every morning to sign for the dole, discussing the world's problmes and wondering what to do with the rest of the day" (107).
"to keep up with things because all the other men on the dole
are experts on what's going on in the world" (107).
The
Women of Limerick
"Women stand with their arms folded, chatting. They don't sit
because all they do is stay at home, take care of the children, clean the house, and
cook a bit and the men need the chairs" (107).
Easter-Religion confuses
Frank
"There's no use asking more questions. If you ask a question
they'll tell you it's a mystery, you'll understand when you grow up, be a good boy, ask
y our mother, ask your father, for the love o' Jesus leave me alone, go out and play"
(108).
Malachy gets a job at the Cement
Factory
"He makes his way downstairs with the candle, sleeps on a chair,
misses work in the morning, loses the job at the cement factory, and we're back on the
dole again" (112).
Chapter IV (4) pages
113-131
In Chapter 4, Frank McCourt's purpose is to
alleviate some of the constant misery. Frank is about 7 years old. No one dies and most of the
stories are funny. School and Frank's First Holy Communion are the core of this chapter. Frank
gets a "formal education" at school but this is contrasted with "the education" he gets from
stories, on the streets and from his friends, especially Mikey Molloy.
“The master says it’s a glorious thing to die for the Faith and Dad says it’s a glorious thing to die for Ireland and I wonder if there’s anyone in the world who would like us to live. My brothers are dead and my sister is dead and I wonder if they died for Ireland or the Faith. Dad says they were too young to die for anything. Mam says it was disease and starvation and him never having a job. Dad says, Och, Angela, puts on his cap and goes for a long walk.” (113)
Mikey Molloy
"He's
eleven, he has fits and behind his back we call him Molloy the Fit. Mikey knows everything
because he has visions in his fits and reads books. he's the expert in the lane on Girls' bodies
and dirty Things in General" (114).
Brendan "Question"
Quigley
"We call
him Question Quigley because he's always asking questions. He can't help himself...The master
rolls his eyes to heaven. He's going to kill Quigley...'You're not here to be asking questions'"
(118).
Paddy Clohessy
"Paddy
Clohessy has no shoe to his foot, his mother shaves his head to keep the lice away, his eys are
red, his nose always snotty. The sores on his kneecaps never heal becasue he picks at the scabsa
and puts them in his mouth. His clothes are rags...when he comes to school with a bloody nose or
black eye you know he had a fight over the clothes that morning" (120).
Mr. Benson
"The
master, Mr. Benson, is very old. He roars and spits all over us every day. The boys in the front
row hope he has no diseases for it's the spit that carries all the diseases andhe might be
spreading consumption right and left" (117).
Confession-Rite Of
Passage
"Am I the
worst of all the boys, Father? No, my child, you have a long way to go. Now say an Act of
Contrition and remember Our Lord watches you every minute. God Bless you, my child"
(127).
Communion Day-Rite Of
Passage
"I had God
glued to the roof of my mouth. I could hear the master's voice. Don't let that host touch your
teeth for if your bite God in two you'll roast in hell for eternity" (128).
"The food
churned in my stomach. I gagged. I ran to her backyard and threw it all up...Look what he
did...Thurn up the body and blood of Jesus. I have God in my backyard" (129).
"In the
name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost. Bless me, Father, for I have sinned...I
overslept. I nearly missed my First Communion. My grandmother said I have standing up, North of
Ireland hair. I threw up my First Communion breakfast. Now Grandma says she has God in her
backyard and what should she do...tell your grandmother to wash God away with a little water and
for your penance say one Hail Mary and one Our Father. Say a prayer for me and God bless you, my
child...Holy water or ordinary water? Ordinary water and tell your grandmotehr not to be
bothering me again" (129).
Mikey Molloy to the
Rescue
Chapter V (5) pages
132-150
In Chapter 5
Uncle Pat
"Everyone
talks to Mam's brother Uncle Pat, because he was dropped on his head, he's simple, and he sells
newspapers. Everyone calls him The Abbot or Ab Sheehan and no one knows why" (132).
Uncle Pa Keating
"Everyone
talks to Uncle Pa Keating becasue he was gassin the war and married Aunt Aggie and if they
didn't talkto him he wouldn't give a fiddler's fart anyway adn that's why the men in South's pub
call him a gas man" (132).
Aunt
Aggie
"She'll only bite your head off. they
say she's always angry because she has red hair or she has red hair because she's always
angry" (133).
Malachy's
Intelligence
"he has a lovely way with the English language and a
fine fist for writing. The offer him sixpence for his trouble but he waves
it away and they hand it to Mam because he's too grand to be taking a sixpence.
When the people leave he takes the sixpence and sends me to Kathleen O'Connell's
shop for cigarettes" (135).
Bill
Galvin
Cigarettes and False
Teeth
"Next day Malachy gets a big piece of toffee as
a reward for sticking in teeth he can't get out and I have to go to the
hospital to have an operation that will close my mouth" (140).
"Mam says. I'm a martyr for the fags and so is
your father...They tell us every day we should never smoke, it's bad for
your chest, it stunts your growth, and they sit by the fire puffing
away. Mam says, if 'tis a thing I ever see you with a fag in your
gob I'll break your face. They tell us the cigarettes will rot your
teeth and you can see they're not lying" (138).
Irish
Dancing
Lessons
"I sinned by taking my mother's sixpence
and lying abnd ther's a hot place in hell for the likes of me,
say a decade of the rosary and ask God's forgiveness for you're
daning at the gates of hell itself, child" (145).
Ages 7, 8 and 9
"I'm
seven, eight, nine going on ten and still Dad has no work. He drinks his tea in the morning,
signs for the dole at the Labour Exchange, reads the papers at the Carnegie Library, goes for
his long walks far into the country. If he gets a job at the Limerick Cement Company or Rank's
Flour Mills he loses it in the third week. He loses it because he goes to the pubs on the third
Friday of the job, drinks all the wages and misses the half day of work on Saturday morning"
(145).
Confraternity
Class
Distinction-Theme
"I'll tell
you what it is, she says. 'Tis class distinction. Theydon't want boys from lanes on the altar.
They don't want the ones with scabby knees and hair sticking up. Oh, no, they want nice boys
with hair oil and new shoes that have fathers with suits and ties and steady jobs. That's
what it is and 'tis hard to hold on to the Faith with the snobbery that's in it" (149).
"Dad says
when he was my age in Toome he served Mass for years and it's time for me to be an altar boy.
Mam says, What's the use he doesn't have the proper clothes for school never mind the
altar. Dad says the altar robes will cover the clothes and she says we don't have the
money for robes and the wash they need every week. He says God will provide...he has the whole
Mass in his head and I have to know the responses...Dad holds my hand going through the streets
and people look at us because of the way we're saying Latin back and forth. he knocks on the
sacristy door and tells Stephen Carey, This is my son, Frank, who knows the Latin and is ready
to be an altar boy. Stephen Carey looks at him, then me. He says, We don't have room for him,
and closes the door" (149).
Chapter VI (6) Pages
151-169
Chapter 6
centers around Leamy's National School, the teachers and students. There is real contrast in the
chapter between people who "have" and the "have nots". The "haves" are mean and do not share.
The "have nots" are more generous.
Mr. Dotty O'Neill and Mr.
O'Dea
"Without
Euclid, boys, mathematics would be a poor doddering thing. Without Euclid we wouldn't be able to
go from here to there. Without Euclid the bicycle would have no wheel. Without Euclid St.Joseph
could not have been a carpenter for carpentry is geometry and geometry is carpentry. Without
Euclid this very school could never have been built" (152).
"Brendan
Quiqley rasises his hand...We expect Dotty to lash at Brendan the way all the masters do when
you ask them a question but he looks at Brendan with a little smile...This is a boy who will go
far...Indeed and he will. The boy who wants to know something about the grace, elegance and
beauty of Euclid can go nowhere but up" (152).
Omadhaun
"Clohessy, you are an omadhaun. Do you
know what an omadhaun is? I don't sir. It's the Irish, Clohessy, your native tongue,
Clohessy. An omadhaun is a fool, Clohessy. You are an omadhaun. What is he, boys? An
omadhaun, sir. Clohessy says, That's what Mr. O'Dea called me, sir, a diddering
omadhaun" (155).
Apple Peel
"It is torture to watch Mr.O'Neill
peel the apple every day, to see the length of it, red or green, and if you're up near
him to catch the freshness of it in your nose. If you're the good boy for the day and
you answer the question he gives it to you and lets you eat it there at your
desk...There are days when the questions are too hard and he torments us by dropping the
apple peel into the wastebasket" (155).
Fintan Slattery
"Of course
Fintan knows who stood at the foot of the cross. He's always running off to Mass with his
mother, who is known for her holiness...Fintan say the rosary every night...he'll pray for
you...He wants to be a saint when he grows up...everyone knows he wears a blouse at home and
curls his hair with hot tongs every Saturday night so that he'll look gorgeous at Mass on
Sunday" (156).
Fintan takes Frank and Paddy
home for Lunch
"Fintan, you had your lunch. We had nothing. Paddy
explodes. You're a feckin'chancer, Fintan. That's what you are an' a feckin'
begrudger too with your feckin' sangwidge an' your feckin' Sacred Heart Of Jesus
on the wall an' your feckin' holy water. You can kiss me arse, Fintan"
(160).
"On the mooch" (cutting
school)
"Paddy and I sit under a hedge eating
the apples till we can't swallow another bit and we stick our faces into a stream for
the lovely cool water. Then we run to opposite ends of a ditch to shit and wipe
ourselves with grass and thick leaves. Paddy is squatting and saying, There's nothing in
the world like a good feed of apples, a drink of water and a good shit, better than any
sangwidge of cheese and mustard and Dotty O'Neill can shove his apple up his
arse...Paddy says, Bejasus 'tis milking time and he's over the wall, stretched on his
back under a cow with her big udder hanging in his face. He pulls on a teat and squirts
milk into his mouth. He stops squirting and says, come on, Frankie, fresh milk. 'Tis
lovely" (161).
The Clohessy's
Home
"Paddy lives in one of
the tall houses on Arthur's Quay looking at the
river. Everyone in Limerick knows these houses
are old and might fall down any minute...The
people down there are wild and ye could get
robbed and killed...some of the steps are
missing and there is shit on the ones that are
still there...Paddy's family lives in one big
room with a high ceiling and a small
fireplace...Paddy's brothers and sisters are on
mattresses on the floor...There's a baby with no
clothes crawling" (164).
Mr. Clohessy is
Dying
He has consumption
(tuberculosis)
He lays in bed and
coughs up blood that he spits into a
bucket
"he has a coughing fit
which brings up all kinds of stuff from his
insides and has him hanging ove the bucket. When
the cough passes he falls back on the
pillow...He hangs over the bucket again. He
gasps for air and reaches his arms out to get
it. He suffers" (164).
Mr.
Clohessy and
Angela
"Champion dancer she was, Frankie. Not skinny mind you
but a feather in my arms and there was many a sorry mans when she left Limerick"
(164).
Angela comes to the Clohessy's
House
Chapter VII (7) pages
170-186
In Chapter
7...
Frank believes in the power of prayer and meets an
Irishmen who is not
Catholic
Angela has her 7th baby. She has been pregnant 7 times
in 9 years. Angela has given birth to 7 children, 3 have died and she has had a
miscarriage. Angela is in her late 20's, only about 26 years old.
Malachy continues to drink any money the family receives whether it is from wages or the dole. Frank, age 9, will become really angry about his father's drinking in this chapter and he begins to lose respect for his dad.
Mickey
Spellacy
"I have a pal, Mickey Spellacy, whose relations are
dropping one by one of the gfalloping consumption...One of our prayers must have
powerful because Brenda stays alive and doesn't die till the second day of
school...We'll go back to St Joseph's and pray that from now on everyone in
Mickey Spellacy's family will die in the middle of the summer and he'll never
get a day off from school for the rest of his life. One of our prayers is surely
poserful because nest summer Mickey Spellacey is carried off by the galloping
consumption and he doesn't get a day off from school and that will surely teach
him a lesson" (172).
Mr.
Timoney
Alphie-Alphonsus Joseph
McCourt
"Mam, what's the baby's name? Alphonsus Joseph. The
words fly out of my mouth. That's a studpid name. It's not even Irish...Aphie
the new baby is chirping away enjoying his baptism day too innocent to know his
name is an affliction" (183).
Malachy Drinks the
Money for the New
Baby
"My heart is banging away in my chest and I
don't know what to do because I'm raging inside...he's there drunk and
buying pints with the baby's money...soon the pubs will close and he'll
be home singing and offering us a penny to die for Ireland and it will
be different this time because it's bad enough to drink the dole or the
wages but a man that drinks the money for a new baby is gone beyond the
beyonds as my mother would say" (186).
Chapter VIII (8) pages 187-21
Peter
Dooley
"Before he leaves the house he always sticks his head out the door and tells the lane, Here's me head, me arse is coming...When he was twelve Quasimodo decided that with the way he looked and the way the world looked at him the best thing would be to prepare for a job where he could be heard and not seen and what better than sitting behind a microphone at the BBC in London reading the news" (188)
Whanking on the
rainspout
"we
promise to pay him a shilling each he'll let us climb up the
rainspout behind his house this very night to look in the
window and see his sisters' naked bodies when they take
their weekly wash...Billy says, I have my own sister. Why
should I pay to see your naked sisters? Quasimodo says, that
looking at your own sister's naked body is the worst sin of
all and he's not sure if there's a priest in the world can
forgive you, that you might have to go to the bishop...The
Fit is up hanging on to the spout with one hand. The other
hand is in his pocket moving, moving and when the spout
itself starts to move and creak Quasimodod hisses, Molloy
there's to be no whankin' up the spout...Mikey's hand goes
faster in his pocket, so fast the spout gives a lurch and
collapses and Mikey is rolling on the ground yelping, I'm
dead, I'm destroyed. Oh God, You can see the froth on his
lips and the blood that comes from biting his
tongue...Quasimodo's mother comes screaming through the
door...She kicks Quasimodo into the hall. He's on his hands
and kees and she drags him to coal hole under the stairs and
locks him in...He's crying and calling...Mamma, Mamma, let
me out. The rats is here. I only want money for the
BBC...Mikey is still on his back, herking and twisting
around the yard. The ambulance takes him off to the hospital
with a broken shoulder and his tongue in ribbons. ..Mrs.
Dooley says, them boys are in a state of sin and should be
taken to the priest for confession before their Confirmation
tomorrow" (189-190).
Confirmation-Rite of
Passage
Typhoid
Fever
Extreme
Unction-Rite of Passage (prayers before you
die)
Malachy's Kiss
"When I wake it's
dark and Dad is sitting by the bed with his
hand on mine...Dad nods and puts his hand on
mine again. He looks at me, steps away,
stops, comes back kisses me on the forehead
for the first time in my life and I'm so
happy I feel like floating out of the bed"
(193).
Patricia Madigan
Seamus
"The book has the first
bit of Shakespeare I ever read.
'I do believe, induced
by potent circumstances
That thou are mine
enemy.'
I don't know
what it means and I don't care
because it's Shakespeare and it's
like having jewels in my mouth when
I say the words. If I had a whole
book of Shakesperae they could keep
me in the the hospital for a
year" (196).
Going Home
"I lie in
bed and think of the hospital where
the white sheets were changed every
day and there wasn't a sign of a
flea. There was a lavatory where you
could sit and read your book till
someone asked if you were dead.
There was a bath where you could sit
in hot water as long as you liked"
(203).
Frank stays back in
school
"The new headmaster, Mr. O Halloran, says he's
sorry, I've missed over two months of school and I have to be put back
in fifth class...I don't want to be in fifth class. Malachy is in that
class..Malachy and all his friends are sneering at me because I was put
back" (204).
Jesus and the Weather
Hoppy
O'Halloran
"We call him Hoppy because he has a
short leg and hops when he walks...He loves America...Hoppy
doesn't call us idiots and if you ask a question he doesn't go
into a rage. He's the only master who stops and says, Do ye
understand what I'm talking about? Do you want to ask a
question?...Mr. O'Halloran can't lie"
(207).
Stock your Mind-Themes: Class Distinction and Hunger
"You have to study and learn so that you
can make up your mind about history and everything else but you
can't make up an empty mind. Stock your mind, stock your mind.
It is your house of treasure and no one in the workd can
interfere with it. Your mind is your house and if you fill it
with rubbish from the cinemas it will rot your head. You might
be poor, your shoes might be broken, but your mind is a palace"
(208).
Malachy-Good Father or Bad
Father?
"I know when Dad does the bad
thing. I know when he drinks the dole money and Mam is
desperate...I don't want to back away from him...I'm up
with him early every morning with the whole world
asleep. He lights the fire and makes the tea and sings
to himself or reads the paper to me in a whisper that
won't wake the rest of the family...my father in the
morning is still mine...When you have your father to
yourself by the fire in the morning you don't need
Cuchulain or the Angel on the Seventh Stop or anything.
At night he helps up with our exercises...the sums, The
English, the Irish, the history...Before bed we sit
around the fire and if we say, Dad, tell us a story, he
makes up one...After the story he takes us upstairs and
kneels with us while we say our prayers...I think my
father is like the Holy Trinity with three people in
him, the one in the morning with the paper, the one at
night witth the stories and the prayers, and then the
one who does the bad thing and comes home with the smell
of whiskey and wants us to die for Ireland. I feel sad
over the bad thing but I can't back away from him
because the one in the morning is my real father and if
I were in America I could say, I love you, Dad, the way
they do in the films, but you can't say that in Limerick
for fear that you might be laughed at. You're allowed to
say you love God and babies and horses that win but
anything else is a softness in the head"
(208-210).
The McCourt's Home, The stink of the Lavatory, the flies,
the rats
"Day and night we're tormented
in that kitchen with people emptying their buckets. Mam
says it's not the River Shannon that will kill us but
the stink from the lavatory outside our door...There is
a stable next to the lavatory...and the stink travels to
our house. The stink from the lavatory and the stable
attracts rats and we have to chase them with our new dog
Lucky. He loves to corner the rats and then we smash
them to bits with rocks or sticks or stab them with the
hay fork...Sometimes the rats escape and run into our
house...Lucky is there to catch them in his teeth and
shake the life out of them...We fight the rats and we
fight the stink from that lavatory...The flies are
nearly as bad as the rats...there's one good thing about
fleas, they're clean, but flies are filthy, you never
know where they came from and they carry diseases
galore. We can chase the rats and kill them. We can slap
at the flies and the fleas and kill them but there's
nothing we can do about the neighbors and their buckets"
(210-211).
Christmas at the
Hospital
Finn the Horse
Chapter
IX (9) pages
216-234
In chapter 9, the
McCourt's marriage is coming to an end.
Angela refuses to sleep with Malachy
anymore.
Malachy goes to England
to get a job, but essentially abandons his
family, sending them no
money.
Frank develops a serious
eye infection that will effect
him for years and years.
No More
Children
"Mam says, Alphie is
enough. I'm worn out. That's the end of it. No
more children. Dad Says, The good Catholic woman
must perform her wifely duties and submity to
her husband or face eternal damnation. Mam says,
As long as there are no more children eternal
damnation sounds attractive enough to me"
(216).
World
War
II
Malachy
Goes to Work in
England
"He says he'll
never go over there and help England win
a war. Mam says, No, you'll stay here
where there's no work and hardly a lump
of coal to boil for the tea. No, you'll
stay here and drink the dole when the
humor is on you...God above, if I had
the fare I'd be off to England myself
for I'm sure they need women in the
factories. Dad says, a factory is no
place for a woman. Mam says, Sitting on
your arse by the fire is no place for a
man" (218).
Eggs-a
symbol of hope
"An egg.
Mam says, This egg is for your father.
He needs the nourishment for the long
journey before him. It's a hard boiled
egg and Dad peels off the shell. He
slices the egg five ways and gives each
of us a bit to put on our bread...Dad
says, What would a man be doing with a
whole egg to himself?...The first
telelgram money order I get I'll be in
the shop buying a big breakfast so that
we can all have our own egg of a Sunday
morning..God above, if heaven has a
taste it must be an egg with butter and
salt, and after the egg is there
anything in the world lovelier than
fresh warm bread and a mug of sweet
golden tea?...Now that your father is
gone to England surely our troubles will
be over. Surely. (219-221).
Waiting for Telegrams and Money Orders that never
come
"We see the telegram boys on
their bicycles swing into the lane. They're happy
telegram boys because the tips they get in the lanes are
bigger than anything they get in the grand streets and
avenues where rich people will begrudge you the steam of
their piss...You don't know what to do with yourself
when the first telelgram doesn't come...the Dispensary
for public assistance. Mam says that's the worst thing
that could happen to any family. It's worse than going
on the dole, it's worse than going to the St. Vincent de
Paul Society, it's worse than begging on the streets
with the tinkers and knackers. It's the last thing you'd
do to keep yourself out of the poor house and the
children from the orphanage" (224).
Conjunctivitis-Pink Eye pages
224-230
Hospital
Reunions
The Family
gets news about Malchy in
England
Angela goes
to the Dispensary for
Help
Chapter
X (10) pages
235-251)
Malachy retreats further and further from his family.
Frank who is 11 years old becomes more and more responsible for providing for his mother and younger brothers.
Angela's extended family
(Aunt Aggie and Grandma) do the bare minimum to
help her and the boys.
Robin
Hood
"In a second I
have two bottles of lemonade up under my jersey
and I saunter away trying to look
innocent...it's no trouble for me to help myself
to a loaf of bread. It's wrong to steal from
Kathleen the way she's always good to us but if
I go in and ask her for bread she'll be annoyed
and tell me I'm ruining her moning cup of tea
(235-238). .
"I got the bread and the lemonade but then Malachy says it was only what Robin Hood would have done, rob the rich and give to the poor. Michael say I'm an outlaw and if they catch me they'll hang me from the highest tree in the People's Park...There's a box sitting outside the door of one of the big houses on Barrington Street...I might as well take the whole box. My mother would say you might as well be hung for a sheep as a lamb. I lift the box and try to look like a messenger boy making a delivery and no one says a word" (235-238).
"
We
should
take
Alphie
with
us
because
he's
small
and
he
smiles
and
people
will
see
him
and
feel
sorry
for
us...We
push
the
pram
out
to
the
rich
avenues
and
roads...there's
no
use
asking
anymore,
we
should
go
around
the
backs
of
the
houses
and
climb
over
the
walls
and
take
what
we
want.
Michael
can
ring
the
front
doorbells
to
keep
the
maids
busy
and
Malachy
and
I
can
throw
coal
and
turf
over
the
walls
and
fill
the
pram
around
Alphie"
(239).
The School Guard Comes Looking for
Frank
"Michael
says,
we're
all
outlaws
now.
Frankie
was
the
first
outlaw
till
we
went
raiding
for
coal
all
over
Limerick...Guard
Dennehy
looks
interested...in
a
few
minutes
we
hear
him
laughing...The
guard
comes
back...he
keeps
covering
his
face
with
his
cap
whenever
he
looks
at
me
or
my
brothers.
Desperadoes,
he
says,
desperadoes...Guard
Dennehy
says
I'm
too
young
to
be
an
outlaw
and
a
father
but
I
have
a
promising
future
in
both
departments"
(241).
Aunt Aggie's
House
"Forty-five she is now and if ther's another
child we'll have to look for a star in the East" (244).
"I
don't
know
why
she's
always
angry.
her
flat
is
warm
and
dry.
She
has
electric
light
in
the
house
and
her
own
lavatory
in
the
backyard.
Uncle
Pa
has
a
steady
job
and
he
brings
home
his
wages
every
Friday"
(246).
Uncle
Pa
Keating
"There
are
good
times
with
Uncle
Pa...He
says,
I
swallowed
the
gas,
I
drink
the
pint,
I
don't
give
a
fiddler's
fart
about
the
world...Aunt
Aggie
would
nag
Uncle
Pa
for
a
month...that's
what
I
don't
understand.
Why
does
he
let
her
nag
him
like
that?
He
went
to
the
Great
War,
he
was
gassed,
he's
big,
he
has
a
job,
he
makes
the
world
laugh.
It's
a
mystery...I
could
easily
have
Uncle
Pa
for
a
father"
(246-247).
Malachy comes Home from
England
"He
says
he
can't
stay
forever,
he
has
to
go
back
to
work
in
Coventry...He's
up
early
on
Holy
Saturday
and
I
have
tea
with
him
by
the
fire...Mam
is
still
in
bed
and
he
calls
to
her
from
the
bottom
of
the
stairs,
I'm
going
now...My
father
is
going
to
England
and
she
won't
even
get
out
of
the
bed...In
a
week
there's
a
letter
saying
he
arrived
safely...In
another
week
there's
a
telegram
money
order
for
three
pounds
and
we're
in
heaven.
We'll
be
rich,
there
will
be
fish
and
chips
and
jelly
and
custard,
films
every
Saturday
at
the
Lyric...The
next
Saturday
there's
no
telegram
nor
the
Saturday
after
nor
any
Saturday
forever"
(248).
Jesuit Priests-Class
Distinction
"It
must
be
grand
to
be
a
Jesuit,
sleeping
in
a
bed
with
sheets
blankets
pillows
and
getting
up
to
a
nice
warm
house
and
warm
church
with
nothing
to
do
but
say
Mass
hear
confessions
and
yell
at
people
for
their
sins
have
your
meals
served
up
to
you
and
read
your
Latin
office
before
you
go
to
sleep...but
there's
no
hope
of
that
when
you
grow
up
in
a
lane.
Jesuits
are
very
particular.
They
don't
like
poor
people"
(245).
Chapter
XI
(11)
pages
252-267
Chapter
11
is
about
several
societal
events
or
Rites
of
Passage
that
nearly
everyone
experiences
in
their
life.
1.
Frank
discovers
his
parents
were
not
perfect
2.
Mikey
Molloy's
has
his
first
pint
(first
drink)
3.
Frank
plays
soccer
and
is
the
hero
of
the
team
(athletic
achievment)
4.
Frank
gets
his
first
job
and
makes
money
Angela's
Trunk
"
You're
a
bastard.
You're
doomed...That's
what
they
call
people
who
aren't
born
inside
the
nine
months
of
the
marriage,
people
conceived
beyond
the
blanket.
What's
that?
What's
what?
Conceived.
That's
when
the
sperm
hits
the
egg
and
it
grows
and
there
you
are
nine
months
later...He
whispers,
the
thing
between
your
legs
is
the
excitement.
I
don't
like
the
other
names,
the
dong,
the
prick,
the
langer.
So
your
father
shoves
his
excitement
into
your
mother
and
there's
a
spurt
and
these
little
germs
go
up
into
your
mother
where
there's
and
egg
and
grows
into
you...All
bastards
are
doomed.
They're
like
babies
that
weren't
baptized...Your
father
and
mother
had
the
excitement
and
they
weren't
married
so
you're
not
in
a
state
of
grace"
(254).
Mikey Molloy's First Pint-Rite of
Passage
"It's
Mikey's
sixteenth
birthday
and
his
father
is
taking
him
to
Bowle's
pub
for
his
first
pint...The
mothers
of
Ireland
are
always
the
enemies
of
the
first
pint.
My
own
mother
tried
to
kill
my
father
with
a
frying
pan
when
he
took
me
for
the
first
pint"
(253).
"The
men
wish
Mikey
all
the
best
in
the
life
to
come
and
wasn't
it
a
gift
from
God
that
he
fell
off
the
spout
years
ago
and
never
had
the
the
fit
since
and
wasn't
it
a
great
pity
about
that
poor
little
bugger,
Quasimodo
Dooley,
carried
off
with
the
consumption
after
all
his
trouble
talking
for
years
like
an
Englishman
so
he
could
be
on
the
BBC"
(254).
Sports Hero-Rite of
Passage
"There's
a
whiteness
in
my
head
and
I
feel
like
a
boy
in
heaven.
I'm
floating
over
the
whole
field
till
the
Red
Hearts
of
Limerick
clap
me
on
the
back
and
tell
me
that
was
a
great
goal,
Frankie"
(256).
Frank's First Job-Rite of
Passage-Pages
257-267
Chapter
XII
(12)
Pages
268-283
In chapter 12 Angela and the boys experience one loss after another
Malachy's Last
Christmas
"He
kisses
each
of
us
on
the
forehead,
tells
us
to
be
good
boys,
obey
Mam,
say
our
prayers...Dad
watches
us
a
moment
eating
our
chocolates.
He
lifts
the
latch,
goes
out
the
door
and
pulls
it
shut"
(271).
Frank
gets
a
nut
Socks
and
Shoes
and
Shirts
"The
shirt
I
wore
to
bed
is
the
shirt
I
wear
to
school.
I
wear
it
day
in
day
out.
It's
the
shirt
for
football,
for
climbing
walls,
for
robbing
orchards.
I
go
to
Mass
and
the
Confraternity
in
that
shirt
and
people
sniff
the
air
and
move
away.
If
Mam
gets
a
docket
for
a
new
one
at
the
St.
Vincent
de
Paul,
the
old
shirt
is
promoted
to
a
towel
and
hangs
damp
on
the
chair
for
months
or
Mam
might
use
bits
of
it
to
patch
other
shirts.
She
might
even
cut
it
up
and
let
Aplhie
wear
it
a
while
before
it
winds
up
on
the
floor
pushed
against
the
bottom
of
the
door
to
block
the
rain
from
the
lane"
(272).
Angela and Michael take in strangers
and puppies and old
men
"Michael
is
just
as
bad.
He
brings
home
stray
dogs
and
old
men.
You
never
know
when
you'll
find
a
dog
in
the
bed
with
him.
There
are
dogs
with
sores,
dogs
with
no
ears,
no
tails...Mam
says
that
dog
has
to
go
tomorrow
and
Michael
cries
all
night
and
cries
worse
in
the
morning
when
he
finds
the
dog
dead
in
the
bed
beside
him...In
the
end
she
tells
Michael,
No
more
old
men.
One
of
them
left
us
with
lice
and
were
plagued.
The
lice
are
disgusting,
worse
than
rats...We
all
agree
there
will
be
no
more
stray
women
and
children,
dogs
and
old
men.
We
don't
want
any
more
diseases
and
infections.
Michael
cries.(
273).
The
Radio
"My
grandmother
is
old
but
she's
not
blind
and
what's
the
use
of
having
a
grandmother
who
won't
go
blind
and
get
a
government
radio?"
(274).
"Oh,
Billie,
Billie,
I
want
to
be
in
America
with
you
and
all
that
music,
where
no
one
has
bad
teeth,
people
leave
food
on
their
plates,
every
family
has
a
lavatory
and
everyone
lives
happily
ever
after"
(275).
The family get Evicted from Roden
Lane
"The
rent
man.
He
says,
Great
God
in
heaven,
where's
the
other
room?
Grandma
says,
What
room?
I
rented
ye
two
rooms
up
here
and
one
is
gone.
Where
is
that
room?
Mam
says,
What
room?
There
were
two
rooms
up
here
and
now
there's
one.
And
what
happend
to
the
wall?
There
was
a
wall.
Now
there's
no
wall.
I
distinctly
remember
a
wall
because
I
distinctly
remember
a
room.
Now
where
is
that
wall?
Where
is
that
room?...Mam
turns
to
us.
Do
any
of
ye
remember
a
wall?
Michael
pulls
at
her
hand.
Is
that
the
wall
we
burned
in
the
fire?
The
rent
man
says,
Out
missus,
I'm
puttin'
ye
out.
One
week
from
today"
(276-277).
Laman's
House
Angela's
Family
Disappears
"Now
I
have
only
two
brothers
at
home
and
Mam
says
her
family
is
disappearing
before
her
very
eyes"
(283).
Chapter
XIII
(13)
Pages
284-296
The Lives of the
Saints
"There
are
four
big
books,
Butler's
Lives
of
the
Saints...The
saints
in
these
books
are
different.
There
are
stories
about
virgins,
martyrs,
virgin
martyrs
and
they're
worse
than
any
horror
film
at
the
Lyric
Cinema...I
have
to
look
in
the
dictionary
to
find
out
what
a
virgin
is...Now
I
have
to
look
up
inviolate
chastity
...unlawful
intercourse...copulatory
leads
to
copulation,
the
union
of
the
sexes...My
favorite
is
St.
Christina
the
Astonishing
who
takes
ages
to
die.
The
judge
says,
Cut
off
her
breast,
and
when
they
do
she
throws
it
at
him
and
he
goes
deaf
dumb
and
blind....They
try
to
kill
her
with
arrows
but
they
just
bounce
off
her
and
kill
the
soldiers
who
shot
them.
They
try
to
boil
her
in
oil
but
she
rocks
in
the
vat
and
takes
a
nap
for
herself.
Then
the
judges
get
fed
up
and
have
her
head
cut
off
and
that
does
the
job"
(286).
Hoppy
O'Halloran
loves
America
and
Insists
Frank
must
continue
his
Education
"Frank
must
continue
in
school.
He
must
not
fall
into
the
messenger
boy
trap.
That
leads
nowhere.
Take
him
up
to
the
Christian
Brothers
,
tell
them
I
sent
you,
tell
them
he
is
a
bright
boy
and
ought
to
be
going
secondary
school
and
beyond
that
university"
(289).
"If
we
don't
want
him
tormenting
us
with
algebra
or
Irish
grammar
all
we
have
to
do
is
ask
him
a
question
about
America
and
that
gets
him
so
excited
he
might
go
on
for
the
whole
day"
(287).
"You
must
get
out
of
this
country,
boys.
Go
to
America,
McCourt.
Do
you
hear
me?"
(290).
Frank
wants to join the French Foreign
Legion
"And
look
at
your
eyes.
They're
bad
enough
here
in
Limerick.
In
the
Sahara
they'll
fester
and
rot
and
fall
out
of
your
head.
How
old
are
you?
Thirteen.
Go
home
to
your
mother"
(291).
Frank
and
the
Excitement
"which
means
impure
thoughts,
impure
words,
impure
deeds
and
that's
what
adultery
is,
Dirty
Things
in
General"
(292).
"I
wake
up
pushing
and
pumping.
It's
a
sin
when
you're
wide
awake
and
going
at
yourself
the
ways
the
boys
talked
about
it
in
Leamy's
Schoolyard"
(291).
"I
can't
stop
interfering
with
myself"
(292).
"The
priest
of
Limerick
have
no
patience
for
the
likes
of
me.
I
go
to
confession
and
they
hiss
that
I'm
not
in
a
proper
spirit
of
repentance,
that
if
I
were
I'd
give
up
this
hideous
sin"
(292).
"Yes, my child, and what else?
I--I--I did dirty things, Father.
Ah, my child, was that with yourself or with another or with some class of beast?
Some
class
of
beast?
I
never
heard
of
a
sin
like
that
before.
The
priest
must
be
from
the
country
and
if
he
is
he's
opening
up
a
new
worlds
for
me"
(293).
Borrowing a
bicycle
Angela sleeps with Laman
Angela Willl do anything for her
children
Chapter
XIV
(14)
Pages
297-308
In chapter 14
Franks experiences several events that mark his Coming Of Age and Sexual
Awakening
He is living away
from his mother and brothers-he cannot go back to Laman's b/c he knows
Angela is sleeping with
Laman.
Waiting for
14th birthday so he can get a job and "be a
man"
Frank
spends
most
of
his
summer
reading
about
sex
and
the
human
body
and
masturbating
Frank
has
run
away
to
his
Uncle
Ab
Sheehan's
"When
I
start
that
that
job
at
the
post
office
I'll
buy
him
shoes...I'll
give
him
an
egg
and
take
him
to
the
Lyric
Cinema...we'll
go
to
Naughton's
and
eat
fish
and
chips
till
our
bellies
are
sticking
out
a
mile.
I'll
get
money
some
day
for
a
ouse
or
a
flat
with
electric
lights
and
a
lavatory
adn
beds
with
sheets
blankets
pillows
like
the
rest
of
te
world...I'll
buy
proper
clothes
for
the
whole
family
so
our
arses
won't
be
hanging
out
of
our
pants
and
we
won't
have
theshame"
(298).
Frank's
Summer
"Sometimes
I'm
up
there
alone
on
the
heights
of
Carigogunnell
...I
climb
to
the
very
top
of
the
castle
where
there
once
was
a
tower
and
there
in
full
view
of
Ireland
I
interfere
with
myself
and
spurt
all
over
Carrigogunnell
and
fields
below"
(299).
"There's no harm if I borrow a loaf or a bottle with every intention of giving it back when I get my job at the post office. I'm not stealing, I'm borrowing, and that's not a mortal sin" (299).
Frank
feels
he
is
a
great
sinner,
suffers
from
guilt
"That's
a
sin
I
could
never
tell
a
priest.
Climbing
to
great
heigths
and
going
at
yourself
before
all
of
Ireland
is
surely
worse
thatn
doing
it
in
a
private
place
with
yourself"
(299).
"I'm not stealing, I'm borrowing, and that's not a mortal sin. Besides, I stood on top of a castle this morning and committed a sin far worse than stealing bread and milk and if you commit one sin you might as well commit a few more because you get the same sentence in hell. One sin, eternity. A dozen sins, eternity" (299).
"If your grow
up in the lanes of Limerick you're bound
to rob the odd orchard sonner or later.
Even if you hate apples you hve to rob
orchards" (301).
Frank, The Library and Sex
"I wake up in
a state of excitement with something hot
and sticky pumping out of me oh God my
male organ of copulation sticking out a
mile people in the park giving me
curious looks and mothers telling their
children come over here love away from
that fella someone should call the
guards on him" (305).
Frank
and
Grandma's
Clothes-Sad
Tone
"All
I
can
find
in
the
wardrobe
is
Grandma's
old
black
dress.
You're
not
supposed
to
wear
your
Grandmother's
old
dress
when
she's
dead
and
you're
a
boy
but
what
does
it
matter
if
it
keeps
you
warm
and
you're
in
bed
unde
the
blankets
where
no
one
will
ever
know"
(307).
Aunt
Aggie
and
Uncle
Pa
Show
up-Humorous
Tone
"What
are
you
doin'
in
me
poor
mother's
dress?
"
(309)
Chapter
XV
(15)
Pages
309-325
Chapter 15 is about Rites of Passage:
Chapter 15 is also about Hunger.
Frank's 14th Birthday
"My name is Frank McCourt , miss, and I'm here to start work.
What kind of work would that be now?
Telegram boy, miss.
The thin one cackles, Oh God, I thought you were here to clean the lavatories.
Your job starts Monday. Go away and wash yourself and come back then.
The
telegram
boys
along
the
wall
are
laughing.
I
don't
know
why
but
I
feel
my
face
turning
hot....on
the
way
out
I
hear
the
thin
one,
Jesus
above,
who
dragged
in
that
specimen?
and
they
laugh
along
with
the
telegram
boys"
(310)
Aunt
Aggie
is
Kind
"She says my
clothes are a disgrace and what did I
wash them
in.
Carbolic
soap.
They smell
like dead pigeons and you're making a
laughingstock of the whole
family.
She
takes
me
to
Roche's
Stores
and
buys
me
a
shirt,
a
gansey,
a
pair
of
short
pants,
two
pairs
of
stockings
and
a
pair
of
summer
shoes
on
sale.
She
give
me
two
shillings
to
have
tea
and
a
bun
for
my
birthday..she
buys
me
the
clothes
for
my
new
job"
(310).
The
River
Shannon-Hunger
for
a
Better
Life
"I
turn
toward
Arthur's
Quay
with
the
package
of
new
clothes
under
my
arm
and
I
have
to
satand
at
the
edge
of
the
River
Shannon
so
that
the
whole
world
won't
see
the
tears
of
a
man
the
day
he's
fourteen"
(311).
A
telegram
for
the
Clohessey's
"If it wasn't for Hitler we'd all be dead an' isn't that a terrible thing to say...I seen her in the Dispensary and she looks worse than my Dennis did in the bed. You have to mind your poor mother. You look desperate, too, Frankie with them two red eyes starin' outa your head. Here's a little tip for you. Thruppence. Buy yourself a sweet" (313).
Frank's
first wages-Rite of Passage-Hunger
for a better
life
"I'll have to save a few shillings from my pound because if I don't I'll be in Limerick forever. I'm fourteen now and if I save something every week surely I should be able to go to America by the time I'm twenty" (314)
Tips
"People
in
the
big
houses
have
English
accents
and
they
don't
tip
telegrams
boys.
The
best
people
for
tips
are
widows,
Protesant
ministers'
wives
and
the
poor
in
general...The
Irishmen
working
in
England
send
their
telegram
money
order
on
Friday
nights
and
all
day
Saturday
and
that's
when
we
get
the
good
tips.
If
you
give
a
small
child
a
telegram
for
his
mother
he's
the
hero
of
the
family"
(316).
Deliver
the
telegram
and
that's
all
"Mrs.
O'Connell
and
Miss
Barry
at
the
post
office
tell
us
every
day
our
job
is
to
deliver
telegrams
and
nothing
else...They
don't
care
if
people
are
dying
in
the
bed,
if
people
are
legless,
lunatic
or
crawling
on
the
floor.
We
are
to
deliver
the
telegram
and
that's
all"
(316).
"But
what
are
you
supposed
to
do
when
a
old
man
that
was
in
the
Boer
War
hundreds
of
years
ago
says
his
legs
are
gone
and
he'd
be
forever
grateful
if
you'd
go
to
the
post
office
cash
the
money
order
and
the
old
man
from
the
Boer
War
says
he
knows
you
have
telegrams
to
deliver
now
but
would
you
ever
come
back
tonight
and
maybe
go
to
the
shop
for
him
for
he
doesn't
have
a
thing
in
the
house
and
he's
freezing
on
top
of
it"
(317)
The
Family is
Reunited
Country
Telegrams-The River Shannon-Hunger
for a Better
Life
"When
I'm
finished
delivering
the
telegrams
there's
enough
time
to
go
to
the
ancient
monastery
graveyard
where
my
mother's
relations
are
buried,
where
my
mother
wants
to
be
buried...there's
plenty
of
time
to
cycle
there,
sit
up
on
the
highest
wall,
look
at
the
Shannon
flowing
out
to
the
Atlantic
on
its
way
to
America
and
dream
of
the
day
I'll
be
sailing
off
myself"
(322).
Theresa
Carmody
"Theresa
Carmody...She's
seventeen
and
she'll
never
see
eighteen.
Theresa
knows
there's
little
time
left
and
that
makes
them
made
for
love
and
romance
and
everything...Theresa
Carmody
has
red
hair.
She
had
green
eyes
like
the
fields
beyond
Limerick.
Her
cheeks
are
bright
pink
and
her
skin
is
fierce
white...I
don't
know
what's
happening
to
me
if
I'm
killing
myself
catching
consumption
from
her
mouth
I'm
riding
to
heaven
I'm
falling
off
a
cliff
and
if
this
is
a
sin
I
don't
give
a
fiddler's
fart...For
weeks
after
that
I
deliver
the
telegram.
Sometimes
we
have
the
excitement
of
the
sofa
but
there
are
days
she
has
the
cough
and
you
can
see
the
weakness
on
her...I
love
Theresa.
I
love
her
as
mush
as
you
love
any
bird
or
beast
or
fish
and
will
you
God
take
the
consumption
away
and
I
promise
I'll
never
go
near
her
again...I
can
see
the
black
crepe
wreath
on
the
door...I
know
now
she
is
in
hell
and
all
because
of
me...I
cycle
back
down
to
the
Franciscan
church
to
beg
for
the
repose
of
Theresa's
soul...I
cry
and
before
God
and
the
Virgin
Mary
to
have
mercy
on
the
soul
of
Theresa
Carmody...I
can't
understand
the
feelings
going
through
me
but
I
know
that
with
all
the
people
who
died
in
my
family
and
all
the
people
who
died
in
the
lanes
around
me
and
all
the
people
who
left
I
never
had
a
pain
like
this
in
my
heart
and
I
hope
I
never
will
again"
(322-325).
Chapter
XVI
(16)
Pages
326-337)
Chapter 16 is
about Frank's HUNGER for a new and
better life in
America
He is torn up
with guilt about the sex he has had with
Theresa Carmody, but feels once he gets
to America a nice American priest will
forgive
him.
Frank also
hungers for a better
job.
He
is
willing
to
do
any
kind
of
work
to
save
the
money
he
needs
to
go
to
America.
Frank
Gets
Fired
Frank
is filled with
guilt
"Theresa
is
a
torment
to
me...I
feel
the
sin
growing
in
me
like
an
abscess...I'm
worn
out
from
being
the
worst
sinner
in
Limerick...I
still
have
the
sin
in
me,
the
abscess,
and
I
hope
it
doesn't
kill
me
entirely
before
I
see
the
American
priest"
(330).
Mrs. Brigid
Finucane
"My mother
says anyone that writes such letters should be boiled in oil and have his fingernails pulled out
by blind people. I'm sorry for their troubles but there's no other way for me to save the money
for America" (333).
Postal Exam
"Ah, pension my arse. Sixteen years of age
an' talking about the pension...If you pass the exam you'll marry a Brigid and have five little
Catholics...You'll be dead in your head before you're thirty and dried in your ballocks the year
before. Make up your own bloody mind and the hell with the safeshots and the begrudgers....'Tis your
life, make your own decisions and the hell with the begrudgers" (334).
"I don't want to go in that door and pass that exam for if I do I'll
be a pemanent telegram boy with a uniform, then a postman, then a clerk selling stamps for
the rest of my life. I'll be in Limerick forever, growing roses with my head dead and
ballocks all dried up" (334).
Frank's New
Job
Chapter
XVII (17) Pages
(338-353)
In Chapter
17 Frank experiences several Rites
of Passage: His Frist Pint, A Fight
with his Mother, A New Job and A
Successsful Confession
Frank is 16
years old he has his first pint and
the results are disasterous.
Another Rite of Passage for Frank that was a tragedy instead of a happy occassion.
Frank goes
to confession and for the first time
feels happy.
Frank's
First Pint-Rite of
Passage
Frank
Fights with his
mother
"That's a nice state to come home in.
It's hard to talk but I tell her I had my first pint with Uncle Pa. No father to get me the first pint.
I stagger to a chair and she says, Just like your father.
I'd rather be like my father than Laman Griffin.
Mind your bloody tongue. Don't talk to me like that I'm your mother.
I'll talk to you any bloddy way I like....I'd rather be a messenger boy than the likes of Laman Griffin oul' drunkard with the snotty nose and his loft and people climbing up there with him...
I slap her on the cheek so that tears jump in her eyes and there's a small whimpering sound from her...
I'm
a
disgrace.
I
hear
my
mother
crying"
(340).
Frank's
Confession
"My
child, sit here with me. Tell me what
troubles you. Only if you want to. I am
Father Gregory. Would you like to go to
confession? God forgives all who repent.
He sent His only Beloved Son to die for
us.
I can't
Father, I
can't.
But could you
tell St. Francis, couldn't you? Then
tell him. We'll sit here and you'll tell
him the things that trouble you. If I
sit and listen it will only be a pair of
ears for St. Francis and Our Lord. Won't
that
help?
I talk to
St. Francis and tell him about
Margaret, Oliver, Eugene, my father
singing Roddy McCorley and bringing
home no money, my father sending no
money from England, Theresa and the
green sofa, my terrible sins on
Carrigogunnell, the Christian
Brothers who closed the door in my
face, my bad eyes that I'm ashamed
of, the tears in Mam's eyes when I
slapped
her...
He tells
me God forgives me and I must
forgive myself, that God loves me
and I must love myself for only when
you love God in yourself can you
love all God's
creatures.
But I want to know about Theresa Carmody in hell, Father.
No, my
child. She is surely in heaven. She
suffered like the martyrs in olden
times and God know that's penance
enough. You can be sure the sisters
in the hospital didn't let her die
without a priest.
..
He
blesses me again, asks me to pray
for him, and I'm happy trotting
through the rainy streets of
Limerick knowing Theresa is in
heaven with the cough gone"
(342-343).
Frank
Starts His Job
Angela,
Malachy
and
Frank
are
Working
Chapter
XVIII
(18)
Pages
354-362)
Chapter 18 is about how Frank finally gets enough money to go to America.
In this chapter Frank has to sin and steal to make his deam come true.
But
he
gets
to
play
Robin
Hood
and
improve
the
lives
of
all
the
people
he
knows
on
the
lane,
who
he
has
terrorized
for
years
by
writing
letters
for
Mrs.
Finucane.
Frank
Has
the
Money
to
Go
to
America
Mrs.
Finucane
dies-Frank
is
Robin
Hood
again
"I
help
myself
to
a
roll
of
money.
Seventeen
pounds.
I
take
the
key
to
the
trunk
upstairs.
I
take
forty
of
the
hundred
pounds
in
the
trunk
and
the
ledger...I
take
the
sherry
bottle
to
save
it
from
being
wasted...I
sit
by
the
River
Shannon...Aunt
Aggie's
name
is
in
the
ledger.
She
owes
nine
pounds.
It
might
have
been
the
money
she
spent
on
my
clothes
a
long
time
ago...the
ledger
is
gone,
no
one
will
ever
know
what
they
owe
and
they
won't
have
to
pay
their
balances.
I'm
your
Robin
Hood...The
ledger
is
well
on
its
way
down
the
Shannon
and
out
to
the
Atlantic
and
I
know
I'll
follow
it
someday
soon"
(354-355).
Frank
Books
his
Trip
An
American
Wake
"A
mother's love is a
blessing
No matter
where you
roam.
Keep her
while you have
her,
You'll
miss
her
when
she's
gone"
(357).
"Mam
says,
we'll
have
a
bit
of
a
party
the
night
before
I
go...American
wakes
because
the
family
never
expected
to
see
the
departing
one
again
in
this
life...but
we'll
be
together
in
America
someday
with
the
help
of
God
and
His
Blessed
Mother...Mam
says
this
is
the
first
time
we
ever
had
a
party
and
isn't
it
a
sad
thing
altogether
that
you
have
it
when
your
children
are
slipping
away
one
by
one...The
moon
is
having
an
eclipse
abroad
this
minute...Aunt
Aggie
says,'tis
a
bad
sign
for
you
going
to
America,
Frankie...the
moon
is
practicing
for
the
end
of
the
world...Oh,
end
of
the
world
my
arse,
says
Uncle
Pa.
'Tis
the
beginning
for
Frankie
McCourt.
He'll
come
back
in
a
few
years
with
a
new
suit
and
fat
on
his
bones
like
any
Yank
and
a
lovely
girl
with
white
teeth
hangin'
from
his
arm"
(356-358).
Frank sails to America
"I'm on deck the dawn we sail into New
York. I'm sure I'm in a film, that will end and lights will come up in the Lyric Cinema. I can pick
out the Statue of Liberty, Ellis Island, the Empire State Building, the Chrysler Building, the
Brooklyn Bridge. There are thousands of cars speeding along the roads and the sun turns everything
to gold" (359).
"I
stand
on
the
deck
with
the
Wireless
Officer
looking
at
the
lights
of
America
twinkling.
He
says,
My
God,
that
was
a
lovely
night,
Frank.
Isn't
this
a
great
country
altogether?
'Tis"
(363).
******Frank
McCourt's
sequel
to
Angela's
Ashes
is
titled
'Tis,
written
in
1999.It
is
the
story
of
his
immigration
back
to
the
country
of
his
birth,
America.
Frank
recalls
his
first
jobs,
his
time
in
the
military
and
going
to
college
to
become
an
English
teacher.
*****The
movie
Angela's
Ashes
was
relesed
in
1999.
The
book
and
movie
made
Frank
a
millionaire.
*****In
2005,
Frank
Mc
Court
wrote
another
book
called
Teacher
Man
about
his
years
as
a
teacher
at
Stuyvesant
High
School
in
New
York
City.
******Frank
McCourt
died
in
2009,
in
Manhatten,
NY,
at
the
age
of
78.
He
lived
in
America
for
almost
60
years.
*****Frank's
mother,
Angela,
died
in
1981
in
America.
The
family
took
her
ashes
back
to
Ireland
to
be
buried
in
the
Sheenan
family
grave
in
the
cemetery
in
Carrigogunnell.
Angela’s Ashes Character List
Author, narrator of the book
Frank writes the book from the point of view of a child/teenager looking at his life.
Frank is born in America, but grows up in Limerick, Ireland
Frank almost dies from typhoid fever
Frank gets a severe eye infection conjunctivitis (pink eye)
He has problems with his eyes for years
Forced to quit school at 14, even though he is one of the best students
Frank’s mother
Poor, looses all her teeth
Gives birth to 7 children, but 3 die as babies
Willing to do anything for her children, including begging, stealing and prostituting herself.
Angela tries to be a good mother
Her only comfort is smoking the “Woodbines” (cigarettes)
Frank’s father
From “Northern Ireland”
Angela’s family thinks he is “odd”
He was a soldier in the IRA (Irish Republican Army)
He had to leave Ireland and go to America because he is considered a criminal.
Gets Angela pregnant-they marry
Good storyteller, singer and dancer, can read and write and speak Latin.
Loves his family, but cannot provide for them, alcoholism.
A proud man, he won’t accept charity, he makes Angela beg.
Frank’s brother, he is charming and attractive.
Everyone likes Malachy
She dies in America, at seven week old
Malachy abandons the family for days when she
dies
Angela goes a little crazy with grief
The family returns to Ireland after Margaret’s death
Twins, Frank’s younger brothers
They die very young within a few months of each other in Ireland
Frank’s father puts a pint of Guinness on top of Eugene’s coffin in a bar
Frank’s younger brother
Frank believes he was left on the 7th step of their house by an angel
Frank’s youngest brother
9. Aunt Aggie
Angela's sister and Frank's aunt.
Aunt Aggie resents the McCourt children, can’t have her own children
Rude and unpleasant
Helps them through tough times.
Married to Aunt Aggie
Frank's warm and caring uncle
Gives Frank confidence and encourages him
Works in the “gas works”
Doesn’t give “a fiddler’s fart”- he is easy-going and fun
Angela's brother and Frank's uncle
Dropped on his head as a child, damaged his brain
Delivers newspapers for a living
Frank moves in with Ab when he fights with his mother and Laman Griffin.
Angela’s mother
Helps the McCourts whenever she can
VERY RELIGIOUS, FOLLOWS ALL THE RULES
Not warm and cuddly or very loving
Does not like Frank’s father
Angela's cousin
Mean and abusive man
Angela has an affair with Laman so he will let her and the children live in his house (keep a roof over their heads)
Frank fights with Laman
14. The MacNamara sisters -
Old and eccentric
Hires Frank to read books to him
A close friend of Frank's, he respects Frank and treats him like an adult.
Seventeen-year-old girl with “the consumption”
Frank has sex with her
Frank worries about Theresa's immortal soul
He thinks Theresa will go to HELL because they had premarital sex
She dies
17. Bridey Hannon
Angela's neighbor in Roden Lane
Favorite confidante, they drink tea, talk and smoke together
Bridey gives her friend much-needed support
18. Mr. Hannon
Frank grows to love like a father
The old man gives Frank his first job delivering coal.
A young diphtheria (lung disease that can be deadly) patient
Frank meets her in the hospital when he is recovering from typhoid.
Patricia reads poems to Frank and jokes with him
She dies
Hospital janitor who helps Frank and Patricia communicate
Memorizes and recites poetry to Frank in the eye hospital.
The old woman who lends money to the poor in Limerick
Frank gets a job writing threatening letters for her
When she dies, Franks steals some of her money for his future
He throws her ledger book into the Shannon River and erases everyone’s debts
22. Mr. McCaffrey
Frank's boss at Easons, Ltd., a company that imports and distributes Protestant newspapers from Northern Ireland.
23. Mikey Molloy
Frank's cross-eyed school friend
“Has fits”(epilepsy)
Can’t have communion
Helps Frank sneak into the movies by faking a seizure
Older than Frank, An expert on sex-related topics
His family is the same as Frank’s (poor, alcoholic father)
Mikey's father
Famous as the champion pint drinker of Limerick (a drunk like Franks’s father)
Wins bets in the bars by drinking, throwing up and drinking some more
Frequent visits to the insane asylum
Like Angela, Nora worries about how she will feed her family when her husband drinks away all his money.
Repeatedly begs for flour to bake bread for her family just before she goes to the “insane asylum”
25. Kathleen O’Connell
Owns the local grocery store
Often gives Frank’s family credit so they can have food to eat
Where Frank goes for toffee, candy and Angela’s cigarettes
26. Saint Vincent DePaul Society
Angela is always asking them for help
The mean men who run the charity make the poor beg and grovel for help
27. Billy Campbell
A friend of Frank's who shares many adventures with him (apples and cows)
28. Question Quigley
A friend of Frank’s from school
Usually in trouble with the teacher because he asks too many questions
A school friend of Frank's
No shoes, lice
Lives in a worse house than Frank
Moves to England in order to earn more money for his family
Paddy’s father
Dies of consumption
Dennis knew Frank’s mother Angela when she was young and pretty and a good dancer
31. Mr. Benson
One of Frank’s teachers
Teaches him the catechism for confession
Uses pieces of newspaper (Limerick Leader) for the Communion wafer
32. Mr. O’Neill
Frank’s teacher, thinks all of education is connected to Geometry and Euclid
Rewards students for good answers with the peel from his apple (CRUEL)
Frank's headmaster and teacher during his final year at school.
“Hoppy” encourages Frank to go to America and find good employment rather than stay in a dead-end job in Ireland
Hunchbacked friend wants to work for the BBC as a radio newsreader.
Asks Frank to pray for his sister Brenda to die after school starts
Promises Frank food at her wake
Mickey dies the next summer of consumption
Very religious
Beautiful curly blonde hair
Has food and money
The boys at school hate him
Sneaks a peek at Frank and Paddy when they are in the outhouse
TB-Tuberculosis
Common, deadly disease
Spread through the air
People cough constantly, spit up blood
A symbol of death and freedom
Frank’s family believes the river, the rain and the dampness of Ireland kill
The river traps Frank in Limerick, Ireland
Frank knows he must sail down the River to America (freedom and opportunity)
A constant influence in Frank’s life-he is scared of but loves the Church
The source of all his guilt
Always afraid he will go to Hell or cause someone else to go to Hell
Confession, Communion and Confirmation are major life events
Throwing up God in grandma’s backyard
Father teaches Frank the mass in Latin, but can’t be an altar boy
The Church refuses Frank an education after 8th grade, even though he is smart
Prays to his patron saint, Saint Francis for help
A kind priest helps Frank to forgive himself
40. The British-The Country of England
The Irish hate the British
The British took over Ireland, stole their land hundreds of years ago
Tried to make the Irish give up their religion (Catholicism)
The Irish blame the British for all their troubles and poverty
Altar Boy 148-149
Angel on the 7th Step 106
Angela 138 martyr for the fags
219- tears in her eyes
240 pneumonia
250 beggar
357
Aunt Aggie 241-248
Christmas 268
Class Distinction 149
Class Limitations 217
Classmates Chapter 4
Clohesseys 163-169
Closed Doors 289, 148-149
Communion &